1. “SER –cker” “ESTAR-bursts”

2. SER VS. ESTAR “to be” is, am, are was, were

3. SER The verb SER (SER-cker) is used when things are PERMANENT. These are things that do not change on a minute to minute or even day to day basis. Like a sucker they last for long periods of time.

4. SER CONJUGATIONS Present tense: Soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son Preterit tense: Fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron Imperfect tense: Era, eras, era, éramos, erais, eran

5. Physical Description Use SER when describing a person’s physical attributes. *He is tall. Él es alto. *They are dark-haired. Ellos son morenos. *You are pretty. Tú eres bonita. These are things that are not going to change overnight. You are always going to be tall.

6. Personality Use SER when describing someone’s personality. This is what that person is like almost all the time. If they are NOT like this it is odd. – She is nice. Ella es simpática. – They are smart. Ellos son intelegentes. – You are funny. Tú eres cómico.

7. Profession Use SER to decribe someone’s profession. – He is a firefighter. Él es un bombero. – They are doctors. Ellos son doctores. – I am a teacher. Yo soy una maestra. Someone’s profession is considered permanent. Even though they may change their profession, it is not done every day.

8. Nationality Use SER to tell someone’s nationality. – She is Peruvian. Ella es peruviana. – We are American. Nosotros somos americanos. – You are Spanish. Tú eres de España.

9. Time and Date SER is used when you are telling a time or date. Although time changes minute by minute, as does dates…you have to think of this as a PERMANENT thing. EVERY day at this time it is 5:04. EVERY year at this time it is June 4 th. It is two o’clock. Son las dos. It is July 4 th. El es el cuatro de julio.

10. Possession Use SER to tell ownership. The car is Joe’s. El coche es de Joe. The house is my grandparent’s. La casa es de mis abuelos. Possesion may change, but like profession, it is considered permanent and will not change on a day to day basis.

11. Events Use SER when talking about an event—where or when it is… The party is at Marcy’s house. La fiesta es a la casa de Marcy. The play is on Tuesday. La drama es el martes.

12. “made of” Use SER when you are talking about what something is “made of”. The chair is of wood. La silla es de madera. The shirt is of cotton. La camisa es de ogodon.

13. Relationship s Use SER when you are describing relationships. Again, sometimes these aren’t permanent, but we always hope they are. He is my brother. Él es mi hermano. She is my girlfriend. Ella es mi novia.

14. ESTAR ESTAR “ESTARburst” Is used when something is TEMPORARY. You chew it, eat it quickly, and it is gone. You use the verb ESTAR with things that change.

15. ESTAR CONJUGATIONS Present tense: Estoy, estás, está, estamos, estáis, están Preterite tense: Estuve, estuviste, estuvo, estuvimos, estuvisteis, estuvieron Imperfect tense: Estaba, estabas, estaba, estabámos, estabais, estaban

16. Feelings and emotions Use ESTAR when you are describing someone’s feelings or emotions. These tend to change often and are not describing the person’s general behavior. She is sad. Ella está triste. We are bored. Nosotros estamos aburridos.

17. Unnatural physical condition of people or things Use ESTAR when you are describing the physical condition of people or things. This is NOT used when it is something permanent. The boy is sick. El chico está enfermo. The soup is cold. La sopa está frío.

18. Location When telling something or someone’s location ESTAR is ALWAYS used. This rule doesn’t always fit neatly into the temporary category. Just remember LOCATION = ESTAR. The cat is in the kitchen. El gato está en la cocina. The United States is in North America. Los Estados Unidos está en norte americano.

19. Which would you use? 1.Perry Mason is a lawyer. 2.You are my friend. 3.We are at the party. 4.She is tired. 5.The pizza is gross today. 6.It is ten o’clock. 7.Fido is my dog. 8.They are handsome men. 9.Argentina is in South America. 10.He is embarrassed. 11.I am short and thin. 12.We are in a bad mood. 13.Elizabeth Taylor is an actress.

20. Your turn! Pick up 12 notecards. On each piece write a sentence using ser or estar USING EACH of the examples we went over today (i.e location, physical description, etc) DO NOT USE an example that I already used. Put the ENGLISH sentence on one side and the SPANISH sentence on the other.